Damion Lee was the best player on a Drexel team that was destined to make noise in March when he tore his ACL against Arizona last November.

It was a devastating blow for the Dragons at the time, as Lee was the most talented player on a roster that included a senior back court of Chris Fouch and Frantz Massenat as well as a big and physical front line. There was reason to be very optimistic before the CAA Player of the Year contender went down.

Lee had surgery on the knee on Dec. 12th. It’s now mid-August and he still has yet to return to action, and while he’ll be traveling with the Dragons on their team trip to China this month, he won’t be playing in any of the games. Hell, he wasn’t even been allowed to play 5-on-5 with his teammates yet.

Getting Lee healthy is going to be the key for Drexel if they are to make a run at the CAA title. Junior wing Tavon Allen returns, as does all-CAA freshman Rodney Williams, but a healthy Lee is the difference maker. He averaged 17.1 points as a sophomore. That’s a bigger boost than any addition to the roster would be able to provide.